Forever, a Tangled fic
Forever, a Tangled fic by CrystalNeonSummerSnow Genre: Romance/Angst Summary: Fate was barren; sad reminders that love couldn’t last forever. Rapunzel knew that fact well, as she kneeled beside his lifeless body, but only one risk could prove that joke wrong. Word Count: 3,232 A/N: Remember, if you haven’t seen the movie, you’ll have to watch it in order to understand this alternate ending more; I refuse to give spoilers to those who haven’t seen it. If you have seen it, do not take this offensively; this is just written for entertainment purposes. I'd rather say no and I cry outside, here it is! ---- Fate was barren; sad reminders that love couldn’t last forever. No matter how much blood could be shed, life was never unlimited. The only thing unlimited to her now was the pain and suffering that kept her locked in that dreaded tower. Her “mother” had always told her that there would be consequences to leaving her routine life in such a forgotten place, but she had to figure that out by losing the last bit of a dream she had. All those years of kidding herself into believing that Mother Gothel was just lying to her all this time; and now, in a moment of unforgiving irony, she was right, despite her evil ways. Thinking about that was enough to make the heartbroken princess choke the cries of her deepest anguish. Strangely, this was the second real emotion she’s actually had since leaving her tower; the first emotion was, unsurprisingly, the love that she felt for the man that saved her; the man that risked his life for her freedom; the man that died in her arms. His name was Flynn Rider. Rapunzel knew of this fact very well: she could never live without her true love by her side. It wasn’t the longest of time she spent with him, but that never mattered to her, for with his lifeless breath still lingering on her cheeks, she had just wished that could’ve been her dead, too. A hand still gripped his wrist tightly while the other supported his head, just to try to see him better through her vision that was blurred by her tears. The beauty that she thought she had was lost in the sea of tears that would soon flood her room if he didn’t wake up. Everything faded from her mind, much like they did when she was in that canoe with him, watching the sky lanterns light the purple clouds that hid in the paradisiac sunset. She remembered it perfectly, and she always would, because that was the last moment she had her magical locks of blonde hair, the hair that could’ve healed him if he didn’t cut off all magic with just a shard of glass from her broken mirror. Incantation wasn’t even the correct noun as she sang. Faltering notes that turned into whispers could only make the dripping, icy cold feel of pain increase up to its zenith. Tears finally won its strength to break free from her eyes, sliding down her cheeks just to land on his. Her forehead pressed against his and another thing that made the crying continue was those eyes of his didn’t open. That song of hers that always healed people, Gothel, or herself, had actually failed. But that didn’t surprise her. This wasn’t an incantation; this was rather a song that made the last remembrances of Mother Gothel’s smugness laughing at the fact that she won. Rapunzel may’ve been hurt with both events the same, but still, Flynn was gone, and there was nothing left to do but mourn. “Flynn, please stay…” Dead silence being his response, the tears fell in more fat drops as she cried. The light that shone outside now became dark with the manifestation of poison and wrath out and about. Gritting her teeth, Rapunzel quieted her cries just a tad. Stray locks spilled over her eyes, casting her gaze into a shadow. Shadows and Rapunzel were no strangers; in fact, that was what she was in her whole life. And just when there was hope, just when her life finally turned the page to let the adventure begin, it ended in unhappily ever after. Everything settled in a dusty shadow that was one oh-too familiar to the princess. The chains behind them clinked to the floor as Rapunzel lifted his head closer to her face. His pale skin glistened through her teary vision; hair also spilled over his face. That hand that gripped his wrist let go to run her fingers through her choppy, brunette hair. Her head then turned momentarily to the hair that she use to have, her long, flowing blonde hair that had been cut off. If only she could easily grow it back in a second, but alas, all the magic that use to fuel her happiness and smile was gone for good, just like Flynn. For all her drawing away, Rapunzel then turned back to the lifeless body. Her hand smoothed his cheek before their foreheads were pressed together again. The tears faded away from her green gaze and she stretched her index finger to his eyelids; she lifted the top one to try and capture one last glimpse of his puppy brown eyes that grew cold from the reputation of a thief. She stopped quickly, however, after seeing that his eyes had rolled into his skull. That glimpse didn’t scare her; she’d seen worse, for sure. That finger traced over his eyebrow and moved back down to his cheek, touching it again with the most tender care she could possibly provide. Her nose nudged against his and their bangs tangled as she squeezed her eyes shut again, letting a few more tears seep through. Her lashes gently brushed against his lids as fewer weeps became none. While mourning, her hand slowly moved down his cheek, her fingertips sweeping against the skin another time. They trailed down to his neck, drawing a little heart on his Adam’s apple to leave an invisible reminder of who she loves most. Her hand flipped from her nails to her palm and made its way across his chest and down to his stomach, stopping at the wound that had now finished gushing with blood. Her hand let the wet wound be the pillow to its numbness as blood oozed between her fingers. Opening her eyes now, she lifted her right knee and let his head rest on it instead. Her free hand landed on his face while the other, now revealing a bloodied palm, latched back onto his wrist again. She curled the flyaway strands that eclipsed his face, feeling the cold, wet tears that landed on those strands rest between her fingers to clean out the blood. Tucking it behind his ear then, an index finger traced over his lips, now letting the question to what they would feel like be answered. Without any wait, she let her own smooth lips press tenderly and, of course, lovingly against the dead skin. Affection broke free with her breath in those short seconds before pulling away. The last bit of contact had to end, she knew, for there was no such decency in trying to keep the subtle passion for a corpse. She quickly took her lifeless hair that was once hers and set it underneath his head when putting him down, trying to avoid making him rest in peace on such a cold floor. Standing up then, she glanced around her room. Color faded, darkness crept in through the window; Rapunzel couldn’t even see the color of Pascal’s scales. His head was inclined, trying to show respect for the person that almost saved her. She knelt down to him and petted his tiny little head for a quick moment, smiling at her pet. His scales turned pink, and she could easily tell his mood depending on what color his scales became. And pink was the color of friendship, and at least that could be the sympathy to her pain. Yet, she knew that her smile couldn’t last a while; not with a dead man behind her. She turned around in a circle at her room. Purples faded into blacks, yellows faded to greys, a whirlwind of deathly colors overcame the ones that were supposed to provide happiness. She moved her hand up to her face, staring at the blood that was Flynn’s blood as it traced down to her wrist. She clenched it into a fist and let it fall to the side. Knuckles turning white, she slouched herself to the window. Cloudless skies became history as puffy whites became swirling greys above her. The paint that covered brick lost all happy meaning in its color; the vines that flowered wilted, and down there was a saddened Maximus. How he came there, she could never quite recall, but it was almost as if he already knew that Flynn died. With being his valiant steed throughout his adventures, they were so close, they must’ve known if one or the other was dead. While that showed a great deal of loyalty, Rapunzel didn’t note that at all, but instead stared at Mother Gothel’s cape on the ground. It seemed very pathetic of the princess to try and focus on remembering someone as untrustworthy as her mother that became a mother only by abducting her; but to Rapunzel, at least it would be a good attempt to fend away mourning over Flynn’s lifeless body. Mother Gothel was no mother at all; much more like a witch in her stories rather than a loving mother. The only thing the woman loved was life everlasting, eternal beauty, and being able to look at envious girls and scoff only while her teenage daughter would stare into the Sun and sing out of boredom. She wasn’t abusive like you might think, but she was rather subtle about her greed. Of course, that didn’t mean Rapunzel wasn’t a little suspicious. Gothel would always tease her, but then pinch her cheek and say that she was just kidding and lie about loving her daughter. Mother Gothel was no mother, not anymore to Rapunzel. And now, with the girl’s eyes boring at the silk cape that looked more like a mere shadow the tower casted, she had wished that she wasn’t so naïve. But, with her strength being more like the strength of a little flower, it wasn’t really something she should blame herself for. Anyone would’ve been fooled by a woman like Gothel, but at least the most important thing was that she was gone and the Earth still spun. No matter how much relief it must’ve been to finally have freedom, Rapunzel didn’t rejoice about that as rain poured down heavily. Her bangs hung in front of her eyes, keeping her from seeing anything now that her tears had finally disappeared. She stuck her head out the window more, not worrying about the idea of falling to the ground. There was no one to hold her back anyways. With the rain still pattering on her head, she looked down to see the world that she always yearned to see since she was young child. The dying vines she forgot about looked more like poison ivy, a type of plant that would restrain anyone of the tower lifestyle; the red rosebushes looked black from a distance; the animals fled for shelter, but at least they had loved ones to go to, and that was such a thing Rapunzel envied. I mean, yes, she’s the lost princess, so that did mean that she would have a real family to go home to. With ditzy imaginations about who the lost princess and what her life was like, she tried her best to picture what life would be like when arriving home. Closing her eyes, a visionary of her parents were provided. They looked like what all kings and queens would look like in fairy tales; they had bejeweled crowns and tiaras and were as wise and graceful as her, their own daughter. Music flooded the air and dancing was all around her. She was then taken to her room, where dresses of all kind were provided; lovely laces, sterling silk, voluptuous velvets, and any other fabric that all princesses wore, as if they were required to. Even if Mother Gothel didn’t abduct her, Rapunzel would already know the basic princess persona. She would smile, she would be the light to those trapped in the dark, and, of course, she would live happily ever after. Yet, picturesque or not, she knew that royalty in a white, royal castle wouldn’t change her feelings for Flynn. No matter how many proposals desperate princes would probably offer, she would turn them down. Nothing, not even the rules of how to be a perfect princess, could battle against her emotions and win. That was the only thing that was everlasting. Her vision soon coming to an end, Rapunzel stepped away from the window and turned back to two things that her eyes fixated on most: Flynn’s paling corpse and her limp, once-golden hair. She knelt down beside the hair and picked up the group of strands that covered her toes. That was when the imaginary light bulb lit up in her head, lighting the flame of a bad idea. When those mourn for the people who were righteous enough, then those dead people descend into Heaven. Well, who said righteous mourners couldn’t kill themselves? Rapunzel knew that if anyone was in there at all, there would be protest. Even Pascal’s scales turned into white, which represented fear. He knew that his owner was planning on killing herself; it was the only way to be reunited with Flynn, but the only question she asked herself was, “How should I kill myself?” While the tower was meant to look like a safe, happy place, there were more killing options that she could list. She could jump out the window, but she would let that be Gothel’s fate rather than hers. She could hang herself with her hair, but considering how many hours it would take for her to just brush her hair, trying to hang herself with it was more like a fool’s errand. From wall to wall, there could be lots of ways to kill herself, but there wasn’t much time for her. Judging Flynn seriously, she knew that those ruffians would find them. Of course, she doubted that they would be dumb enough to believe that she killed the notorious Flynn Rider, but then again, with the blood that covered now both her palms from rubbing her hands together while panicking, she knew that they would easily jump to conclusions. Panicking at the last second, she snatched the blade that Gothel used to stab Flynn. Her thin reflection stared back at her warily. She looked over at her dead love, then back at the dagger. She knew that if she was going to end things, she was going to end them quickly. Yet, with stepping over Flynn’s satchel, she opened it to reveal her stolen tiara. Just in case someone did happen to barge in, at least they wouldn’t accuse her of murdering if they knew she was the lost princess. Pressing the blade to her neck, she glanced one last time at his body, eyes focused mainly on the wound. Before even a small, jagged cut could be formed, banging against the wooden door erupted. The blade fell with a clatter and she ran to Flynn. Before picking his dead body up, another idea came. She let Pascal jump onto her shoulders, swept the shattered glass from the mirror into his satchel, and tied her hair into a rope. She whipped it out the window and it landed on a branch. Now picking him up, she gingerly walked on her hair like a tightrope. Maximus rushed underneath and she purposely fell off, landing on his saddle. They quickly raced into the forest and hid from any destruction. The forest was just like the ones Rapunzel use to paint as a little girl. Little bunnies hopped from bush to bush, bluebirds sang on tree branches, and deer huddled together for warmth. She simply got up off of the saddle and set Flynn down by the river that the waterfall in the distance created. A faint, orange glow was casted from a not-so far distance, and of course, she knew what it was even before turning around to acknowledge it. As the tower burned down to ashes, Pascal snuggled up against her neck, making a good effort to make her smile as her remains of her boring childhood became nothing more but black ashes that sunk into the dirt. She didn’t have the urge to be sad about that; looking back, she wouldn’t even call it a childhood, but a restraint from life. Her reflection appeared dim in the river. Her hair became disheveled from wind and sweat; her dress had a few stains from the dirt after kneeling down. Pascal then jumped off her shoulder and stared at her blankly. Being an animal, he couldn’t say anything, but with his scales turning pink again and giving her a nod, he knew that what she had to do was the second part of her fate. As she uncurled the legs tucked underneath herself, she stood up and looked into the satchel. Sharp pain entered her fingers as they ran across the glassy edges of her broken mirror. Whatever she was going to do, that would be the only chance of a happy ending she would get. Grabbing the biggest shard in there, she stared at all of the surroundings around her. The waterfall disappeared as she prepared for her quick, yet touching demise, the animals just stared in supposed apathy, but was really using apathy to shadow anticipation for the most gruesome happily ever after she dreamt of. She positioned it at her throat as she stood in front of Flynn, knowing that when she dies, she’ll be able to fall on him and her head would land on his wound. One quick slice and it was over for her. Her last gasp of breath and her last moment of spotty vision now blurring into white, she closed her eyes and titled her head closer to the puddle of blood on the wound. The tiara fell off her head and fell beside Flynn’s legs, letting his dead self have both treasures he was looking for. Blood pooled at the hollow of her throat and some even streamed down the top of her dress. The animals bowed their heads in respect of a reunited couple and how both their fates were met with glass and blood. Eventually, they weren’t the only ones in the forest. The ruffians that burned down Rapunzel’s tower came by and saw the dead bodies. While thugs like them would just steal their prize and take off, they instead looked at each other and gave the other a nod. While to them—and soon to be others—it was a sad ending, it was rather nostalgic in ways. I mean, of course they were sad that love went to extreme measures in order to keep passion’s lustful and loving fire burning; yet, some would rather consider this the happily ever after every princess deserved. While most princesses were usually the ones killed, but brought back to life later on, Rapunzel made an even bigger sacrifice. She actually proved her love for Flynn by slitting her throat, thus costing her life, and no other princess, let alone person would do such a thing for the ones they loved. Nowadays, people that met for storytelling would often speak of the story of Princess Rapunzel and Flynn Rider, and whatever they wanted to call the ending wasn’t something to argue about, for we all know that those two are up above in the golden fields, frolicking and smiling. Yes, they would be together… forever.